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Good Medicine
by Leslie Goldman
Pregnant pause
or 1 in 8 couples in the United States
today, the path to pregnancy is riddled
with roadblocks. Experts point to a host
of medical, environmental and social
factors, from pesticides in food to hormonedisrupting stress. Chief among the fertilityzappers is age. According to the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, 20 percent of American women now have their
first child after age 35. Unfortunately, about one-third of them will
confront fertility barriers, thanks to diminished egg reserves or a
heightened risk of other reproductive challenges.
When a couple have trouble conceiving, it’s usually the woman
who finds herself sweating it out in the stirrups. But while onethird of infertility problems can be traced to the female partner, the
same number can be attributed to the man (see “Sperm Zappers,”
pg. 48). Both partners have issues 10 percent of the time, and
20 percent of cases are frustratingly labeled “unexplained.”
Most female infertility cases stem from ovulatory problems,
including hormone imbalances or polycystic ovarian syndrome
Trying to
conceive? Don’t
put all your eggs
in one basket.
Natural remedies
can complement
or even replace
traditional
treatments.
Some
women who
undergo
fertility
treatment
might not
actually
need it.
46 naturalhealthmag.com june 2011 PHOTOGRAPHY: PORNCHAI MITTONGTARE. Prop styling: Amy Paliwoda.
f
the integrative approach
Good Medicine
Sperm like
it cool: Buy
him some
boxers.
Stress less
“People going through infertility have similar
stress levels to cancer, AIDS and heart disease
patients,” says Alice Domar, Ph.D., executive
director of the Domar Center for Mind/Body
Health at Boston IVF and author of Conquering
Infertility (Penguin). The link between stress
and infertility is hotly debated—a recent study
Reducing
stress won’t
guarantee
success, but
it can make
“trying” less
trying.
Sperm zappers
American men’s sperm
counts are dropping, thanks
to obesity, prenatal chemical
exposure and other factors.
Fortunately, men can benefit
from lifestyle modifications in
as few as three months, as
they continually generate new
sperm. Encourage your man
to adopt these changes:
Stop smoking This habit
damages sperm DNA.
Check out his meds Some
blood pressure drugs lower
sperm count. Other common
culprits: diuretics and ulcer,
epilepsy and antifungal meds.
Reduce stress A 2010 study
published in Fertility and
Sterility found an inverse
relationship between stress
and sperm quality.
Keep ’em cool Don’t use the
laptop on the lap or keep the
cellphone in pants pockets.
Be fruitful and multiply
Antioxidant-rich, produceheavy diets (as well as
antioxidant supplements)
have been shown to improve
sperm quality.
BPA
exposure
and heavy
alcohol or
marijuana
use can zap
sperm.
naturalhealthmag.com june 2011 PHOTOGRAPHY: (clockwise from top) DORLING KINDERSLEY/GETTY IMAGES; CSA PLASTOCK/CSA IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES; PANDO HALL/PHOTOGRAPHER’S CHOICE RF/GETTY IMAGES.
(PCOS), a hormonal disorder characterized by
irregular periods, excess hair growth and acne.
Others face thyroid disease; mechanical issues
like blocked fallopian tubes; or endometriosis, a
painful disorder in which the uterine lining grows
outside the uterus. Certain culprits, including
blocked tubes or very low sperm counts, require
surgery or assisted reproductive techniques
like in vitro fertilization (IVF). But some experts
say a quick-fix mentality on the part of both
patients and physicians has contributed to an
over-reliance on IVF, which costs about $12,000
per cycle and can be exceptionally taxing on a
woman’s body, emotions and relationships.
A growing number of practitioners are
advocating a blend of holistic care with
mainstream reproductive endocrinology.
“Lifestyle is a huge factor,” says Sami S. David,
M.D., assistant professor of reproductive medicine
at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City
and co-author of Making Babies: A Proven 3-Month
Program for Maximum Fertility (Little Brown).
While you can’t change your age, you can
control the foods you eat, the way you handle
stress and your environment. We asked the
experts—many of whom used a combination
of traditional and complementary approaches
to surmount their own fertility challenges—for
their top recommendations. Choose the methods
that suit your physical or emotional needs; if
you haven’t conceived after three to six months
(depending on your age and patience level),
consult a reproductive endocrinologist.
in the British Medical Journal, for example,
found no link between emotional distress and
IVF failure. But many experts believe chronic
stress has hijacked our primitive fight-orflight response, causing the pituitary gland to
unnecessarily release endorphins that suppress
reproductive hormones.
A landmark 2000 Harvard Medical School
study found that women who participated
in a 10-week mind-body program, including
relaxation and yoga, were nearly three times
more likely to conceive than women who
didn’t. And a 2009 Domar-led study found that
women who took part in a mind-body stress
management program before or during their
second IVF cycle had a 160 percent higher preg­
nancy rate compared with those who did not.
Strike a pose “Yoga reduces the stress
hormone cortisol and induces the relaxation
response,” explains Tami Quinn, a registered
yoga teacher and co-founder of the Chicagobased holistic fertility center Pulling Down the
Moon. Specific poses, such as Viparita Karani
(Legs up the Wall), can also increase blood
flow to the ovaries and uterus, potentially
thickening the uterine lining; this can help
with embryo implantation. Stick with gentle
hatha or restorative yoga—this is not the time
for Bikram (“hot”) yoga. Try: Pulling Down the
Moon’s Yoga Practices for Fertility DVD
($25; pullingdownthemoon.com)
On pins and needles A 2008 British
Medical Journal study found that women who
underwent IVF and acupuncture together
were 65 percent more likely to conceive than
women who only underwent IVF. According to
acupuncturist-herbalist and Making Babies coauthor Jill Blakeway, L.Ac., acupuncture works
by promoting uterine blood flow. It can also
quiet post-IVF uterine contractions, encouraging
implantation, and decrease levels of cortisol
(a “stress hormone”) and prolactin; both are
known to disrupt reproductive function.
Healthy fats
are fertilityfriendly.
Like yoga,
guided
imagery can
focus and
calm your
mind. Try
visualization
CDs from
circlebloom
.com.
Eat to conceive
Jorge E. Chavarro, M.D., Sc.D., an assistant
professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the
Harvard School of Public Health and author
of The Fertility Diet (McGraw-Hill), followed
18,000 participants in the long-running
Harvard Nurses’ Health Study who were trying
to get pregnant. Among his findings:
Get your protein from plants Foods that
elevate insulin levels contribute to ovulatory
disorders. “Not all proteins are digested the
same,” Chavarro explains. “Animal proteins
require more insulin to be secreted.” Beef and
poultry, specifically, were associated with
infertility, but replacing 25 grams of animal
protein with 25 grams of plant protein (beans,
peas, nuts) was related to a 50 percent lower
risk of ovulatory infertility.
Ban trans fats Found primarily in packaged
baked and fried foods, trans fats elevate insulin
levels. Monounsaturated fats, like those found
in avocados, nuts and olive oil, are associated
with a decreased risk of infertility.
Avoid sugar spikes Quickly digested carbs,
such as white bread, potatoes and soda, spike
blood sugar, promoting insulin secretion.
Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D., co-author of The
Yeast Connection and Women’s Health (Future
Health), dislikes these carbs for another
reason: They encourage yeast overgrowth.
“Yeast toxins can cross-react with hormones
necessary for pregnancy, blocking their
receptor sites,” she says. Dean recommends
Can the cola:
Blood sugar
spikes lead
to ovulation
problems.
50 naturalhealthmag.com june 2011 PHOTOGRAPHY: (clockwise from top) SAWAYASU KEITH TSUJI/PHOTODISC/GETTY IMAGES; TERTRA IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES; YAGI STUDIOS/PHOTODISC/GETTY IMAGES.
Good Medicine
Good Medicine
Cacao and
some other
plant foods
contain
magnesium,
which may
facilitate
conception.
address elevated follicle stimulating hormone
(FSH) levels, repeat miscarriage, unexplained
infertility and PCOS, says Oakland, Calif.based acupuncturist and herbalist Zoe
Cohen, L.Ac. Multicomponent formulas are
generally tailored for each patient based on
her diagnosis. Cohen cautions that herbs can
be deceptively powerful and may interact
with fertility drugs, so be sure to see a licensed
herbalist experienced in treating infertility.
Blend in a bottle Not ready to jump
head-first into Chinese herbs? Stanford
University School of Medicine researchers
found that FertilityBlend, a combination of
prenatal vitamins and fertility-enhancing
herbs, increases the chances of conceiving.
(FertilityBlend for Men boosts sperm count.)
Try: FertilityBlend for Women ($30 for 90
capsules; fertilityblend.com)
eliminating sugar and white flour, eating fiberrich, slowly digested complex carbohydrates
and incorporating plain yogurt or probiotic
supplements to encourage the growth of
healthy gastrointestinal bacteria, which
favorably compete with yeast toxins for space.
Try: Culturelle Probiotics ($15 for 30 capsules,
vitacost.com) or Lifeway plain organic kefir
($5 for 32 ounces; lifeway.net)
Tea up A study published in the American
Journal of Public Health found that tea drinkers
doubled their odds of conceiving, perhaps
because of tea’s antioxidant content. Note:
Blakeway advises avoiding red raspberry leaf
tea because it is linked to miscarriage.
Supplement smartly
Mellow magnesium This mineral is thought
to keep the fallopian tubes relaxed, facilitating
the travel of sperm to meet egg. In IVF, it can
calm the uterus to encourage implantation.
Dean suggests getting 750 milligrams daily.
The mineral is also found in seaweed, cacao,
leafy greens, nuts and seeds. Try: Natural
Calm Magnesium Citrate ($23 for 16 ounces;
calmnatural.com)
Something fishy Holistic nutritionist Sally
Kravich, M.S., CNHP, recommends fish oil (800plus milligrams EPA and 500-plus milligrams
DHA per day) to balance your hormones and
encourage healthy fetal brain development.
Try: Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega ($60 for
180 softgels; vitaminshoppe.com)
Helpful herbs Chinese herbs are often
used in conjunction with acupuncture to
52 naturalhealthmag.com june 2011 Many of the chemicals in products we use
every day contain endocrine-disrupting
compounds called xenoestrogens, which mimic
estrogen in the body and block real estrogen
from doing its work (bisphenol-A, or BPA, and
phthalates are two examples). High blood levels
of the chemicals used in nonstick cookware
and waterproof clothing have been shown to
significantly increase female infertility risk.
David suggests eating organic foods and
Send in the clowns An
Laughter
might
be good
medicine for
infertility.
Israeli study found that women
who were visited by “medical
clowns” immediately following
IVF embryo transfer were more
likely to conceive than patients
who missed out on the laughs.
PHOTOGRAPHY: (from left) MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN; CONSTANCE BANNISTER CORP/ARCHIVE PHOTOS/GETTY IMAGES.
Clean up your act
Good Medicine
keeping your home as green as possible: Avoid
microwaving in plastic containers, steer clear
of cosmetics containing phthalates or parabens
and include phytoestrogens, such as flaxseed
or soy, in your diet; they’ll bind to the estrogen
receptor sites before xenoestrogens can.
Avoid weight extremes
According to the American Society for
Reproductive Medicine, 12 percent of female
infertility cases are a result of weighing too
little or too much. That’s because estrogen is
produced in fat cells. Too little body fat and the
body can’t produce enough estrogen to fuel
ovulation; too much and the body reacts as if it
were on hormonal birth control. Gaining just
6 to 8 pounds (if underweight) or losing 10 to
14 pounds (if overweight) may do the trick.
Exercise in moderation
Leslie Goldman is a health writer in Chicago.
Moderate
exercise
reduces
stress while
promoting
circulation
to the pelvic
region.
54 Stick
with oldfashioned
cleaning
methods.
PHOTOGRAPHY: (from top) ALFRED GESCHEIDT/RISER/GETTY IMAGES; URS/KUESTER/PHOTONICA/GETTY IMAGES.
David recommends gentle exercise, avoiding
workout intensities that elicit an endorphin
rush, as this may suppress hormone and
egg production. A 2006 study in Obstetrics
& Gynecology found that IVF patients who
reported exercising four hours or more per
week for one to nine years were 40 percent less
likely to have a live birth than women who did
not exercise. Women are advised not to work
out while undergoing IVF treatment because
doing so could harm the ovaries.